Police say PEYA owners to be charged with fraud

31 January 2018

A charge of conspiracy to defraud is being prepared by
investigators against PEYA Travel owners Peter Brian Boyce and his wife Rhea
Donna Bayona-Boyce, according to the Hong Kong police.

This came as the number of customers whose travel plans were
fouled up by the air-ticket fiasco that unraveled just before Christmas last
year surpassed the 1,000 mark, an officer of the Consulate’s assistance to
nationals section said.

A spokesman for the Police Public Relations Bureau said in
response to an inquiry from The SUN that the case will be filed in court against
the spouses as soon as their investigations are completed.

He also said no further arrests have been made since
Bayona-Boyce, known as Yanyan to many in the community, was arrested in her
Wanchai flat on Christmas Day. Police nabbed her Australian husband shortly
after Yanyan was released on Dec 27.

The authorities are still looking for PEYA marketing manager
Arnold Grospe, who Consulate sources believe has fled to Macau,
and possibly flown home from there.

The PPRB spokesman said the Boyce couple reported to the
Central Police District Crime Squad in early January and were instructed to
return again early this month. The police bail for their temporary release had
been extended as investigations were still ongoing, the spokesman said.

As of Jan 30, a total of 1,118 PEYA customers had gone to
the Consulate to file complaints and seek a refund from the travel agency, ATN
officer Danny Baldon told The SUN.

He said many more customers were going to the ATN everyday
to lodge their complaints.

The affected customers, mainly domestic workers, included
those who had booked tickets for the Lunar New Year holiday this month, the
Lenten season in March and the graduation period in May.

PEYA was shut down on Dec. 19 in the wake of the ticketing
fiasco, and its signage on its third-floor shop at World-WidePlaza
in Central has now been torn down.